


Limbic

by LiterallyThePresident



Category: Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Memory Loss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-09
Updated: 2016-10-09
Packaged: 2018-08-20 08:22:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8242720
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiterallyThePresident/pseuds/LiterallyThePresident
Summary: Kanan sits vigil at Ezra's side after a mission gone wrong.





	

Kanan gritted his teeth when the medical droid ordered him to let go of Ezra's hand.

"The main surgery is finished but he requires the bacta tank," it informed him.

Kanan felt Hera's hand slip into his, her firm grip a direct contrast to Ezra's nonexistent one. He listened intently to the procedures in the medical bay. He heard them strip Ezra of his clothing, heard them fit the mask over his face, heard them lower his body into the viscous liquid.

"It is lucky you discovered him when you did," the droid said cheerfully. "He would have died had you been a few moments later."

"Don't tell me that," Kanan snapped, nerves frayed. He felt Sabine touch his arm and wondered when she had entered the room.

"What happened to him?" Hera demanded. "What did this to him? We didn't see anyone alive in the area he was in."

"It is a parasite."

"A parasite?" Her breath caught. Kanan squeezed her hand as dread coursed through him.

"Correct. It's a rare breed found on rainy planets such as the one he was trapped on. It enters open wounds and nests in the part of the brain that holds memory. As the parasite grows, the brain begins to decay. As-"

"It was _eating_ his brain!?" Sabine gasped, face pale. He felt her shift as someone, presumably Zeb going by the familiar smell, put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"No. The acidic nature of its pheromones was causing his limbic system to decay. As the limbic system decays, the patient suffers rapid memory loss. Soon after, the body begins to deteriorate as well, a side effect of the pheromone. I have heard organics describe it as the body 'forgetting' how to function. Victims usually die in two days." Kanan looked sick.

"Will he be okay?" he asked, placing a hand on the tank that held his wrecked Padawan.

"Yes. The surgical removal of the parasite and the introduction of remedial medication into his brain stem has already jumpstarted the biological repairs. His limbic system should be back to normal within three days."

"And his memories...?" Hera asked fearfully.

"His memories will return as well," the droid assured. "It will just take a few days after he wakes."

He could hear Ezra breathing into the mask, hear the bubbles streaming past him and the hum of the life support system.

How could he have let this happen?

"Commander Jarrus?" The droid's voice broke through his thoughts. "I found this on Patient Bridger's person." It placed a datapad in Kanan's hand. "He had been making logs. I have not listened to them."

"Thank you," Kanan said, tucking it into his pocket. "I'll let you know if they say anything important." The droid seemed satisfied and left to attend other patients. Kanan took off his mask, letting his unseeing eyes face Ezra's tank as though he could somehow see him.

"You should listen to those now. It may help us understand what happened." Hera pointed out gently.

"I'll listen to them later," he insisted, lowering himself to sit cross legged in front of Ezra's tank.

"Kanan." She sighed.

"I have to stay with him."

"He won't wake up for another three days. I'll stay with him, love. Go find out what happened to our... to Ezra." Kanan found he didn't have the strength to argue with her. He briefly rested his forehead on the cool glass separating him from Ezra.

"I'll be back. I'll be right back," he murmured, hoping wherever Ezra was, he would hear him and be reassured.

  
Five minutes later found him sitting on his bunk with the datapad in his hands. He toyed with it as he tried to build up the courage to turn it on. He was nervous, afraid to hear what Ezra had said, what he'd endured. But he had to get a sense of what his Padawan had gone through so he could help him recover.

He took a deep breath.

He played the first entry.

  
**Entry 1**  
_So I'm trapped here until Kanan and the others can come get me. Great. Real asset to the team, Ezra. I'm hiding in a vent in some abandoned hovel in case that crazy guy from earlier decides to eat me or something. Or that thing that attacked me comes back. Whatever it was, it bit me and I had to tear my shirt to bandage it because_ someone _used the last of the bandages when her bomb went off early._

_I was so eager to prove myself this time. I thought 'Hey, a bunch of settlers mysteriously turn up dead, I can go investigate alone, no biggie!' For the record, I'm blaming Chopper for my ship crashing. He wasn't there and he hasn't touched the ship but I know he did something. In all honesty though, something isn't right here, people don't just die for no reason. As soon as this headache clears up and my arm stops bleeding, I'll go outside to explore a little more. I'm sure Kanan will understand._

**Entry 2**  
_I didn't go outside. It was raining and my head was killing me and guess what? The rain on this planet is acidic! Isn't that great? Also I saw that crazy guy a few blocks back. Shaking like mad and trying to fix a window. Badly. The man was shaking hard enough to rattle his teeth, he kept dropping his tools. He didn't seem to notice his skin blistering. It was like fixing that window was the most important thing in the world. Like that window was all he had left. I'm probably reading too much into this._

**Entry 3**  
_Crazy guy is dead. He just keeled over in the middle of the street. And it wasn't the rain that did it, it hadn't even broken the skin yet. Not very reassuring. Hopefully Kanan finds me soon because I really want to leave. I don't think I'll starve, I packed rations and I'm good at... well rationing them. But still, I'm ready to leave. It's way too quiet. The headache went away, so that's a plus._

**Entry 4**  
_Crazy guy is dead. I took a nap and when I woke up, he was just lying there in the street. Poor guy, I wonder what killed him. It's making me pretty nervous. I've started talking a little quieter just in case._

**Entry 5**  
_There's a makeshift bandage on my arm, but I don't know where it came from. It's a little bloody so I'm not gonna mess with it for now. Kanan should be here soon. It's been... uh... You know, I can't actually remember how long it's been. That's probably bad._

**Entry 6**  
_I found out that the rain on this planet is acidic, so I won't be trying to go outside again. There are names floating through my head and they're important names, my family, so I'm listing them so I don't forget._

_Kanan_  
Sabine  
Zeb... or was it Seb? Zed? Something like that.  
Hera  
Also there's some images of a droid. Orange, I think.

_I'm gonna try to go outside._

**Entry 7**  
_I feel safer in the vent so I'm gonna stay in here for a while until I can get my head on straight. Is there someone coming to look for me? I feel like there is but I can't for the life of me remember who. Maybe I mentioned it earlier?_

**Entry 8**  
_I'm looking at my previous entries and they make less and less sense to me the more I hear them. I guess this person called Kanan is supposed to be coming for me, but I don't know how long ago that was. I can't remember who Kanan is, but something tells me he's important to me. All these names have some significance, I just need to think._

_Kanan_  
Sabine  
Someone  
Hera  
A droid. Was it purple? I can't remember.

**Entry 9**  
_Where are my parents? Why am I so far away from... my planet. My planet is... Lothal? Lothal. Was I looking for them? I remember looking for them. Maybe that's why I'm here? For all the good it did. I can't remember how much food I've had, there's still a lot but just to be safe I'm not gonna eat any more._

**Entry 10**  
_Kanan_  
Hera  
A girl? She may be purple. Purple is relevant.

**Entry 11**  
_...I forgot what I was going to say._

_I feel strange._

**Entry 12**  
_Kanan  
Hera_

_Kanan  
Hera_

_Kanan  
..._

**Entry 13**  
_I dreamt of an orange woman. She was pretty but sad. It wasn't a happy dream. There was a man with a mask, and a lot of red. The dream is fading already._

**Entry 14**  
_I'm slipping. I can't remember what my parents were named. Or what they looked like. I wonder if they're looking for me. I hope they are. I hope they are._

**Entry 15**  
_I found a list of names in my datapad, but none of them ring any bells. It probably didn't help that my chest feels tight._

_I'm scared. I don't know where I am._

_I'm scared._

**Entry 16**  
_I don't know where I am. I can't forget. I can't forget. My name is Ezra. My name is Ezra._

_My name is... Ezra._

_My name is... My name is... Blast it all!_

**Entry 17**  
_I have to sleep. My lungs feel tight and my vision is blurry. I may die here. Maybe I'll remember something after I die?_

That was the last entry. Kanan's hands were shaking when he finished, his Padawan's frightened voice lingering in his mind. He put the datapad into his pocket and got up, feeling his way to the door. Ezra needed him.

The next three days passed in a haze of caf and an aching back. Kanan spent his time meditating in front of Ezra's tank, monitoring his signature, ruminating on ways he could have prevented this, and ignoring the medical team's attempts to get him to leave.

He was there when they took him out of the tank on day three, carefully drying him off and dressing him in the hospital clothing. He heard them lay him on the bed, heard the equipment being attached to him and the rustle of a blanket being drawn over his still form. Kanan waited until they were done before pulling up a chair and returning to his vigil, only now he could actually touch his charge. Now he could physically reassure himself that he was there and alive.

Kanan's hand was resting on Ezra's arm when he felt Ezra drift into some modicum of wakefulness, his signature fuzzy with the remnants of his drugged sleep.

"Who...?" It sounded like his head was tilted towards Kanan. Kanan's throat felt tight, his Padawan's hoarse voice uttering that one word was the best thing he'd heard in days.

"Don't worry, Ezra. I'm here. You'll be just fine." Kanan allowed himself to run a hand over Ezra's short hair.

"What...?"

"Sleep, kid. I'll be here when you wake up."

"...Kanan... right...?"

**Author's Note:**

> I hope I did Ezra's descent into infirmity well. And Kanan's character. I hoped you like it.


End file.
